MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: Anywhere between 1,500 and 5,000 jobs are likely to be created over 1-2 years for each new banking licence awarded by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), estimates by leading head hunters, including Korn/Ferry International, Egon Zehnder, Heidrick & Struggles, EMA Partners, Russell Reynolds Associates and Randstad India, suggest.

The RBI on Wednesday granted bank licences to micro lender Bandhan Financial Services and Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC). In the next few months, it will also prepare a framework for differentiated bank licences that will be available on-tap. Retail banking, operations, branch banking, technology, credit, risk and treasury are the profiles that will see the most demand for talent. And given the emphasis on financial inclusion, many jobs will open up in smaller centres.

"Those who have worked in Tier 2, Tier 3 cities or the rural areas would be sought after, given the emphasis on financial inclusion," said Sanjiv Sachar, consultant at Egon Zehnder. "The initial focus will be on leadership hiring across consumer banking, corporate banking, transaction banking, global markets and support functions. About 10-15% of the new talent will be hired from other industries, including consumer, telecom, IT and professional services," said Puneet Pratap Singh, partner-in-charge, New Delhi, financial services practice, Heidrick & Struggles.

"New banks are likely to offer stock options which will vest over a period of 4-5 years. As much as 40-50% of the compensation package at senior levels may be stock options," said Monica Agrawal, partner and head of financial services at executive search firm Korn/Ferry International.

"It's not just about the possibilities of wealth creation but also the prospect of starting out and scaling up," says Firoze Patel, managing director at Russell Reynolds Associates. Head hunters say that candidates for several of the key support roles, including head of treasury, technology, human resources and operations, have either been identified internally by some of the companies which are NBFCs — or have been hired over the last few months.

"Some applicants were electively beefing up and upgrading their existing teams with 'no-regret' hires — people who would fit into their existing operations and also morph into a bank structure, when required," says Sonal Agrawal, managing partner, Accord Group. At IDFC alone, which was given in-principle approval by the RBI on Wednesday, key appointments over the last few months include former banker and financial services entrepreneur Ajay Mahajan who was appointed the group head of new initiatives in October 2013 while veteran banker Avtar Monga came on board as COO in March.

Both of them, say head hunters, will play a key role. "Most of the action will happen at the CXO levels, that is, direct reports to the CEO as well as the ones reporting to them," feels K Sudarshan, managing partner-India and regional VP-Asia, EMA Partners International. "The new licences will also give rise to a lot of backend jobs, including those in processing, outsourcing to third parties and the like," says Aditya Narayan Mishra, president, staffing, Randstad India.

"For the small centres, existing employees of public sector banks will be targeted especially at the entry and midlevel," he added. Compensation increases have been in the range of 8-12% this year, according to Heidrick & Struggles' Puneet Pratap Singh. Standard Chartered and Citi are trying to ensure business heads are talking to teams more frequently, according to a head hunter.